What's truly scary isn't ghosts or monsters! It's us humans!

Box: This is the story of the sweat and tears filled youth of the student council members who struggle night and day for the peace and safety of the school.Text under box: Third Year Student CouncilText on the left: Reform

Sugisaki: What's this?Sakurano: Good job noticing it, Sugisaki.Sugisaki: Well, with something that big, I'd worry about anyone who didn't notice it.[TN: The text on the wall is the same as in the box in the previous panel.]

Sakurano: This is a secret plan to make sure the readers don't make any misunderstandings about us.Sugisaki: Misunderstandings?

Sakurano: People who already know about us aren't a problem, but...Sakurano: Well...coincidentally, the contents of the first two chapters was just us eating.Sakurano: People who don't know us might think that we're just a bunch of horrible kids who don't do any work and just mess around.Sugisaki: Well, most of what you do is eat.

Sakurano: Usually we're super busy with work for the sake of the students.Sugisaki: Who are you talking to?

Sakurano: That's right. Lately, rumors like the seven mysteries of the school are being spread around the school as if they were true.Minatsu: The seven mysteries are...those, right? The ones where if you learn of all 7 of them, you'll be cursed...Chizuru: Probably.

Minatsu: What's wrong with the seven mysteries?Minatsu: They're the standard subject of discussion at this time of year.

Sakurano: That's the problem!Sakurano: Because they're the standard, the people who don't like that kind of thing end up hearing them.Girl1: And then in the music room...Girl2: Wait...Girl2: Stop this. Okay? Okay?Girl3: My friend also said that...Sugisaki: That's true.

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Sugisaki: I have no interest in rumors but I somehow know of 21 of them.

Sakurano: That's 7 x 3 so...Sakurano: That's overkill! That's not just Sugisaki. Now 2 unrelated people have gotten wrapped up in this!

Sugisaki: Quit exaggerating.

Sakurano: No. This has gotten urgent. We have to do something immediately.Sugisaki: Why is she so enthusiastic about this?Minatsu: Who knows.

Sugisaki: Aren't people of her stature usually pretty easily scared by this kind of thing?

Sakurano: Wh-why are you telling a story all of a sudden? Don't digress from the topic at hand.Minatsu: I'm not digressing. To deal with it we need to know all the details, right?Sakurano: W-well...

Sakurano: A-anyway, I don't need to hear it!!

Sugisaki: As I thought...

Minatsu: This...

Chizuru: Reaction...

Mafuyu: Means...!!

All: We've found some interesting material!

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Chizuru: Minatsu's right.Chizuru: First we need to confirm and investigate each and every one of the ghost stories.

Sugisaki: We should tell the different stories we know now.

Mafuyu: I...think that's a good idea, too.

Sakurano: W-wait a second, you all...Sugisaki: Oh? Are you scared, president?Chizuru: She couldn't be, Ki-kun.

Chizuru: She's the great student council president, right? There's no way she'd be scared by something like a ghost story.Minatsu: That's right, that's right. No one's afraid of ghost stories at her age.Mafuyu: I love scary stories, too...I have ever since I was in elementary school.

Sakurano: There's no way an adult like myself would be afraid of ghost stories!Sakurano: F-fine! Let's do this!Sugisaki: We got her!!

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Chizuru: In that case...SFX: *clap clap*

Sakurano: B-but we don't have much time, so everyone only tells one story...Sakurano: Hnyah!?

Sakurano: What?Sakurano: What's going on?

Guy: Ane-san, when you're done we'll take care of it, so call us again then.Chizuru: Okay, thank you.

Sugisaki: ...Who are they?Guys: We are the strongest.Guys: And will come running whenever Ane-san calls for us.Box: Members of the Hekiyou Academy Public Works Research SocietyChizuru: Bringing tatami mats and this other stuff to the room...

Chizuru: really gives us the proper setting, doesn't it?Text left of Chizuru: C'mon...let's get started.Minatsu: ...Can we include her in the seven mysteries of the school?

Minatsu: There are no knives in this school's home ec room.Minatsu: Do you know why that is?Minatsu: Yes, it's true that they're kept in a cupboard in the home ec supply room.

Minatsu: But think about it.Minatsu: Below the counter, there's a storage place for them.Minatsu: Normally, it would be fine to just keep them there.

Minatsu: We usually use them when practicing preparing food, so having to prepare them each time is a pain, right?Minatsu: So why are they in the storage room?

Minatsu: It's because of a tragedy that occurred because there were knives in the home ec room...

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Minatsu: Long ago...there was a certain girl...Minatsu: Her height and build were poor but she had a really cute face.Text left of "Sakurano": Flat ChestSakurano: Huh? That character sounds really friendly.

Minatsu: For now we'll call her Kurimu-chan.Sakurano: It was me!?

Minatsu: One day, she forgot something at school.

Sakurano: I really need it for tomorrow...

Minatsu: She was afraid of the school at night...Minatsu: but this had happened many times before, so she'd gotten used to it.Minatsu: Kurimu-chan went to get the object from school...

Minatsu: And the next day...

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Minatsu: Her cold body was found.Sakurano: Ee!!

Minatsu: Kurimu-chan died in the home ec room.Minatsu: She had been repeatedly stabbed.Sakurano: Now I wish you hadn't named her Kurimu-chan...

Minatsu: The criminal was soon caught.Minatsu: He was a pervert who had been appearing in the area at that time.

Minatsu: He was just gloating to himself about managing to sneak into the school when Kurimu-chan ran into him.

Sugisaki: Huh!? When did this turn into a murder mystery?Text left of bubble: That face is the one from Con*n, right!?

Sakurano: Someone!!Minatsu: And she was now his prey.Sugisaki: You ignored me!?

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Minatsu: Of course, Kurimu-chan ran away...but he chased after her.Minatsu: In the end, she was cornered in the home ec room.Sakurano: HaaSakurano: Haa

Minatsu: The man noticed that it was the home ec room...Sign: Home Economics Room

Minatsu: Took the knife from the area under the counter...

Sakurano: Stop!

Sakurano: Please!Sakurano: Help me!

Minatsu: And...Sakurano: N...Sakurano: No!Sakurano: Don't kill me...

SFX: *stab* *stab* *stab*

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SFX: *tremble* * tremble* *tremble*

Text above Sakurano: Ah.

Text above Sakurano: Ahem

Sakurano: Wh-what? That's it?Sakurano: A-a simple story of a murder in the past making them move where the knives are kept isn't going to...

Minatsu: No, president. That wasn't the direct reason the knives were moved to the supply room.Sakurano: Eh?

Minatsu: There's more to the story.Minatsu: Something happened after that incident.Minatsu: That's right...

Minatsu: After the incident, a student who stayed in the home ec room after school died.Minatsu: And this time...

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Minatsu: She was found with every knife in the home ec room in her.

Sakurano: A-and the person who did it...?Minatsu: Isn't it obvious?Minatsu: It was...

Sakurano: It was...?

Minatsu: You!!Sakurano: Eee!!

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Text above Mafuyu: It came out...Text above Chizuru: Yup, it did.

Text right of Sugisaki: Oh...She's coming back.

Sakurano: Wh-what do you mean?Sakurano: I couldn't be the one who did it.Sakurano: Don't joke around.Minatsu: No, no. That's not what I meant.

Minatsu: I meant that the person who did it was Kurimu-chan. That's right...Minatsu: It was Kurimu-chan's ghost...

Minatsu: The death was not something a human could have done.Minatsu: She was stabbed all over her body pretty much at once.Minatsu: It was almost as if the knives were floating in the air and all came at her at once...

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Minatsu: It was after that....Minatsu: that they stopped keeping the knives in the home ec room and moved them to the supply room...

Minatsu: President.Minatsu: Be careful when going home late from working on student council work.

Minatsu: If someone happened to leave a knife in the home ec room after class...Minatsu: and you happened to enter the home ec room...

Minatsu: you might lose your life.

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Minatsu: How was that, president?Minatsu: ...Wait, huh?

Sakurano: Th...Sakurano: That...wasn't scary at all.Text left of Chizuru: Aka-chan...You're not convincing anyone.Sakurano: That was just boring gossip.

Minatsu: Oh, that's too bad.Minatsu: Oh, but don't worry. Mafuyu's ghost story is dozens of times scarier than mine.

Mafuyu: I guess I have some expectations to live up to.Mafuyu: I'll tell you the best scary story I have.Sakurano: Eh?

Sakurano: Mafuyu-chan, you don't have to...

SFX left of Mafuyu: *smile*SFX over Sakurano: *jump*

Mafuyu: This actually happened 6 years ago...Sakurano: Eeeee!!

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Box: And the president was told a ghost story by Minatsu, Mafuyu-chan, and Chizuru-san.Sakurano: Uh...Sakurano: Uuh....

Minatsu: You look pretty scared, president.Mafuyu: I think anything we say now would scare her.

Sugisaki: Once upon a time...there was a girl named Kurimu-chan.Sugisaki: She worked as a maid for a boy named Sugisaki Ken. She served him all her life with her body and soul.Sugisaki: The end.Text left of maid Sakurano: I'll service you well with my body today.Sakurano: Nooooo!

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Sugisaki: That was a nice reaction, but let's go a little further.

Sugisaki: The school swimsuit Kurimu-chan used in elementary school...Sugisaki: still fits now that she's in her third year of high school.Sakurano: Kyaaaah!

Sugisaki: Kurimu-chan's prayers were in vain and her measurements didn't increase at all.Sakurano: Noooo!

Sugisaki: Sugisaki Ken licked all over Kurimu-chan's toothbrush and then secretly put it back where it was.Sakurano: Waaaaah!

Sugisaki: But all of you really do love scary stories.Sugisaki: Even though being scared is definitely a negative feeling.Text under the panel: The desk was put back in its place.

Chizuru: It's the same thing as getting a thrill.Text right of Chizuru: Like bungee jumping.Chizuru: It's like being able to enjoy danger while guaranteeing your safety.

Sugisaki: But you can't say you'll always be safe. Because of the way the world is, it can't be helped that the people who enjoy it will be called abnormal.Sugisaki: Since everyone naturally enjoys it, no one says anything, but isn't it really twisted in a way?

Minatsu: Well, I guess you could think of it that way...Mafuyu: Thinking of it that way, the way this school is right now is scary in and of itself.

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Mafuyu: If the mentality of enjoying scary stories is abnormal, then this school is...Mafuyu: No, this entire world is a community filled with abnormal people.Mafuyu: Thinking about it that way, it really is a scary thing.

Minatsu: S-stop thinking like that.

Mafuyu: I love scary stories, but I can't explain why I do.Mafuyu: That might be an unexplainable scary thing in and of itself.

All: Hmm...

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Box: The conclusion reached from today's discussion.Text: It's impossible to stop the circulation of scary stories.

Sakurano: *sigh*

Sugisaki: Do you think we overdid it...?Minatsu: Maybe...People who don't like scary stories really don't like them.Text right of Sakurano: *sigh*...

Sugisaki: A way to stop scary stories, huh...?

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Box: A few days later.Text above cat: Nyaah.

Sakurano: For some reason people stopped telling ghost stories in my class all of a sudden.Sakurano: This is another result of the popularity of the student council!

Chizuru: Come to think of it, I haven't heard any either.Chizuru: Why did it calm down like this?

Sugisaki: Calm down...huh?

Mafuyu: What is it?Sugisaki: Oh...nothing.Sugisaki: It was probably due to the new rumors that started spreading the day after our discussion.

Sugisaki: That's right. Due to two rumors...

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Sugisaki: The first was a ghost story about the "Revival of Ghost Stories".

Girl1: Have you heard the story about the bathroom in the 2nd year building?

Girl2: Wait. Stop it with these stories.Girl2: I don't like them.Girl1: Do you have no courage in those giant breasts of yours?Girl2: No sexual harassment either!!

Girl1: What are you afraid of? It's just a fictional story.Girl2: Shut up.Text right of girl2: Don't poke me.Girl1: What's scary about it?

Girl2: I know...But if I don't want the slightest chance of getting "cursed".

Girl1: Are you talking about the story about the seven mysteries?Text left of girl2: Mh....Text left of girl1: You baby.

Girl1: I know of at least 50 stories about this science room alone. Like the moving skeleton, the moving specimen, and the specimen that peels off your skin.Girl1: But, as you can see, there's nothing here.Skeleton: Ka ka

Girl2: Noooo!Sugisaki: It said that you really would get cursed if you learned of all seven of the mysteries and, like the other stories, it evolved.Sugisaki: The disaster that would befall you because of the curse was the "Revival of the Ghost Stories".

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Sugisaki: It was a curse that would revive all the ghost stories one knew.Sugisaki: The more you knew, the stronger the curse would be and eventually it would be strong enough to take your life.Sugisaki: That was the new ghost story that I made up.

Sugisaki: I created a new one of the seven mysteries that would be convenient for the president because it would make those even slightly afraid less likely to tell the stories.Sugisaki: A lot of people must have actually been afraid.Sugisaki: The ghost story boom practically disappeared.

Sugisaki: But I think it wasn't just because of my ghost story. It had a large part to do with the other rumor.Sugisaki: The other rumor was not one I started.Sugisaki: It was something I heard partway through spreading my rumor.

Sugisaki: It was a rumor about a female student who went around exterminating spirits.

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Sugisaki: That girl...

Sugisaki: would appear in every story.

Girl: Nooo!

Sugisaki: And every time it was right at the climax.

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Mysterious Girl: Are you injured?Girl: N-no.

Mysterious Girl: Oh, spirit of the dead that loathes the living.Mysterious Girl: I shall lead you to paradise.

Sugisaki: She always exterminated...Mysterious Girl: So you're over there...

Sugisaki: the spirit that caused the incident.

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Sugisaki: By changing the stories from being about ghosts to being about action stories about defeating the ghosts...Sugisaki: that rumor did exactly the opposite of what mine did. It destroyed the ghost stories themselves. And it was clearly created to stop the ghost stories from being spread around.Sugisaki: Thinking of when the story was created and when the rumor started to spread, the one who created it had to have been...

Sugisaki: So why was the girl in the story wearing a parka?Minatsu: Ah?Minatsu: That's because if her face was unknown she had the feeling of the mysterious hero and that's always cool.Sugisaki: You sure are picky.

Minatsu: But in the middle of saving a student, that student saw her face. And after many twists and turns...Minatsu: the information reaches an organization after the power to fight demons and it turns into a person vs. person battle story...Sugisaki: It's a continuing story!?